Thanks to providers like Fidelity, people can rely on easy, convenient systems to stay on track with their retirement savings. But when it comes to saving for important near-term goals (think: vacation, house, or wedding), people tend to be less organized.
Fidelity Labs tackled this problem and defined the challenge as: "How might we improve the experience of saving for near-term goals? How might we make it easier, faster, and better?"
The Human Centered team learned that what tends to derail people from their near-term savings goals is that saving for the near term can be challenging because it’s not systematized, like retirement savings. Without more comprehensive support, savers often default to thoughtless systems that don’t keep them accountable, don’t give them a clear sense of their progress, and don’t help them think smarter about how they save and invest for a goal.
Since the start of the pandemic, short term savings goals have become an even more important priority for over half of the population affected in some negative way by the pandemic. Fidelity published an article "Study: Nearly Four-in-Ten Americans Say They’ll Be in “Survival Mode” in 2021, But Most Are Optimistic About a Brighter Financial Future" that supports the role out and integration of Short term savings goals into their services.